Land Matters Media Scan – 28 February 2017

USAID

1. Group urges improved land policies – mentions USAID’s SURGE project (2/17/17)
   Source: The Manila Standard
2. Call for nominations: Equator Prize 2017 launches global search for nature-based solutions for local development (2/9/17)
   Source: UNDP

Upcoming and Recent Events

1. Recognition of Customary Tenure in the Mekong Region: a Dialogue (2/27/17)
   Source: Land Portal
2. Urban Land Conflicts in Latin America and the Caribbean (2/24/17)
   Source: Land Portal
3. Enhancing Open Access to Knowledge, Information & Data in the Mekong: Open Data Festival and Regional Capacity-building Workshop (2/28/17)
   Source: Land Portal

Reports and Publications

1. Groups urge ECOWAS to wade into communities’ land rights (2/20/17)
   Source: The Guardian
2. Related: Securing communal lands and forests (2/23/17)
   Source: FIAN
3. No end in sight for land rows pitting owners and squatters (2/19/17)
   Source: Daily Nation
   Related World Bank report: Opening Doors to the World (2/9/17)

Global

1. Pope says indigenous people must have final say about their land (2/20/17)
   Source: The Guardian
2. IASS, FAO and UNDP Highlight Resources to Protect Global Commons (2/21/17)
   Source: IISD
3. Land Update: Global, National Partnerships and Projects Focus on SLM and Governance (2/14/17)
   Source: IISD

Africa

1. The Dynamics Of Land Deals in Africa (2/3/17)
   Source: PLAAS
2. The future of medium-scale commercial farms in Africa: lessons from Zimbabwe (2/20/17)
   Source: The Zimbabwean
3. Uganda: Bring Back Land Cases to Clan Leaders, Emorimor Tells Soroti Chief Magistrate (2/15/17)
   Source: All Africa
4. Sierra Leone News: Obliterating Legal Rights in Large Scale Land Deals in Sierra Leone (2/13/17)
   Source: Awoko
5. South Africa: Land restitution without compensation would spell disaster for SA (2/17/17)
   Source: Biz Community
6. Kenya: Land question: The elephant in the room (2/14/17)
   Source: Daily Nation
7. Zimbabwe: Illegal settlers threaten Zimbabwe’s timber industry (2/21/17)
   Source: Place
8. Nigeria: Controversy trails Cross River’s plan to overrule EIA on UN conservation site (2/27/17)
   Source: The Guardian

Americas

1. Jamaica: Gov’t funds LAMP land titling project through 2017/18 (2/20/17)
   Source: Jamaica Observer
2. Brazil pushes on with plan to open farmland sales to foreigners (2/16/17)
   Source: Reuters
3. This Land is Your Land: Patagonia and the Property Rights Fight (2/15/17)
   Source: The Huffington Post
4. Colombia death toll rises as gangs fill vacuum left by Farc rebels (2/18/17)
   Source: The Guardian

Europe and Asia

1. Caucasus “land grab” feared in remote UNESCO heritage site (2/20/17) Source: Reuters
2. Israel’s Lieberman insists land swaps key to two-state solution (2/20/17)
   Source:Your Middle East
3. China’s Massive Farming Potential Could Be Unlocked by Mortgages (2/30/17)
   Source: Bloomberg News
4. Cambodia: Land feuds get top-level airing (2/23/17)
   Source: Khmer Times
5. China: A Million People Live in These Underground Nuclear Bunkers (2/16/17)
   Source: National Geographic

Pacific

1. Australia: Indigenous land rights could halt Australia’s largest coal mining project (2/16/17)
   Source: The Ecologist
2. Indonesia: Wilmar grabbed indigenous lands in Sumatra, RSPO finds (2/16/17)
   Source:Mongabay